Last surviving Wizard Of Oz munchkin Jerry Maren dies aged 99
Jerry Maren, the last surviving munchkin from the classic 1939 film The Wizard Of Oz, has died aged 99.
The actor’s niece Stacy Michelle Barrington said on Wednesday that Maren died at a San Diego nursing home on May 24.
Maren, who was just 4ft 3in tall, was one of more than 100 people recruited to play munchkins in the film.
The Wizard Of Oz cast members, from left, Margaret Pellegrini, Clarence Swensen, Ruth Duccini, Jerry Maren, Karl Slover and Mickey Carroll appear at the Culver Hotel in Culver City, California, where they stayed during the filming of the movie (Mark J Terrill/AP)
He stood out among the others, however, as the “Lollipop Kid” who sang, danced and then famously handed Judy Garland’s Dorothy an oversized lollipop.
Maren would go on to appear in scores of other films, as well as TV shows and commercials, in a career that spanned more than 70 years.
But he said The Wizard Of Oz always held a special place in his heart.
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